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(No Model.) I I T. P.-TAYLOR.

DRESS SHIELD. 4 No. 355,572. Patented Jan. 4, 1887.

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UNITED- STATES,

PATENT 'FFICEO THOMAS P. TAYLOR, CF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT, A SSIGNORTO THE OANFIELD RUBBER COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

DRESS-SHIELD.

KBPECIPICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 355,572, dated January4, 1887.

Application filed April 21, 1886.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, THOMAS P. TAYLOR, a citizen of the United States,residing atBridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State ofConnecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inDress-Shields; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame. My invention relates to the class of devices known as dressshieldsor dress-protect-- novel construction of which the followingdescription, in connection with theaccompanying drawings, isaspecification, numbers being used to indicate the several parts of thedevice.

Figure l is an elevation of my preferred form of carrying my inventioninto effect, and

Figs. 2 and 8 are elevations of forms of my invention in which thedetails of construction are slightly modified.

The ordinary dress-shields in use require to be attached firmly to thegarment ordinarily by stitching. It has therefore been necessary to havea separate pair of shields secured inevery dress or article of clothingwhich it is desired to protect from perspiration, or else to spendconsiderable time changing the shields when the garment is changed.

A still more serious objection to the dressshields of this class is thegreat care required in putting on a tight-fitting garment to insure thatthe shields or protectors are pressed down smoothly; also, the greatcare required in stitching them in. place, there being a constantliability of the stitching tearing out or the threads breaking while inuse. Whenever the threads break or the stitching tears out, the shieldrolls up in the armpit and affords little, if any, protection to thegarment,

Serial No. 199,579. (No model.)

except just at the sleeve-seam. I whollyovercome these objections byproviding both sides of the shield or protector with a firm butflexible-jointed stay, which is firmly secured at the edges of theshield, willreadil y conform to the 5 5' other garment. The stays areordinarily made of brass or copper wire.

It will be apparent that my invention is equally applicable to all sizesand styles of shields. I have shown it as applied to the or- 6 dinarystyle of dress-shields now upon the market.

1 and 2 indicate the two folds of theshield, the former acting toprotect the sleeve of the garment under the arm and the latter the bodyof the garment under the arm.

3 indicates the stays, which are secured in any manner at the edges ofthe folds. As stated above, I preferably use wire for this purpose, andsecure it in position by folding the edges 7 of the stay over it, asindicated at 4 in the drawings, and either stitching or cementing thefold in place.

In Fig. 1 I have shown the stays as formed of wire,and provided at theirends with eyes 8 5, which lie at such an angle to each other as topermitthem to interlock, as is clearly shown in the drawings. I thusjointhe stays in the two folds together with a loose joint, so that in usethe arm may be lifted and moved freely 8 without the slightestinconvenience.

In Fig. 2 the ends of the stays are provided with similar eyes, whichare secured together by a suitable cord or link, 6.

In Fig. 3 the stay in the sleeve-fold is pro-' 0 vided with spring-coils7, which permit the stay tov yield when the arm is raised,thus lesseningthe strain upon the material of the. shield. I

I am aware that dressshields have been eX- 5 panded by marginal framesmade without joints, and also that aprons have been provided withspringclasps, and make no claim thereto.

It will of course be understood that the details of my invention may beconsiderably va- 10o ried without departing from the principle thereof.

I claim 1. The combination, with a dress-shield, of 5 stays 3, securedat the outer edge thereof and provided at their ends with eyes 5,whereby the stays are secured together.

2. The combination,with a dress-shield having the usual folds, of anindependent stay se- 10 cured at the outer edge of each fold, the endsof said stays being provided with eyes 5,which interlock, as shown,whereby said stays are joined together, but move freely in use.

3. The combination, with a dress-shield, of stays secured at the outeredges of the folds, I 5 each of said stays having eyes at their ends,whereby they are joined together, and one of said stays havingspring-coils 7, which yield when the arm is raised and prevent strainupon the material of the shield.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

1 THOMAS P. TAYLOR.

Witnesses:

A. M. WOOSTER, CORA E. RUGGLEs.

